Besides the people, working with Black Rock f/x on the pyro crew for the Trojan Horse was the highlight of mine and Helga's burn. Working up inside the horse, packing fireworks, running wire through the right rear leg to set off separate parts of the pyrotechnics and gas mines, and pushing the fire button on the firing unit. Also working with CF, structural engineer, rigging cable to keep the head up during the fire, and watching the cutting of structural members for a somewhat controlled collapse of the horse.

I got a new respect for 'roadies' and other folks that work in similar situations with total audio mayhem. It was nearly impossible to communicate in/on the horse with the MV's blasting sound and noise. Comm's were best hand signals and writing in my pocket notebook and showing it to who I wanted to talk to. Oh and showtime in 15 minutes!!, and we were ready!!

It was the only day I wore long pants, long sleeved shirt, and boots all day ( 7 am Friday thru 1:30 am Saturday )

Hey did you guys know Michelle Rodriguez was at the burn this year? The Hispanic girl in the movie Avatar..she always plays a bad ass.I think thats awesome... Anyone else spot celebrities on the playa?

Have to post something else here to counter my post in the "didn't like" thread.

The night of the Trojan Horse burn, my friend and I spotted a group of people by their bikes with AMAZING matching sparkly light-up suits. We said "Let's go hug them!" and went up to the closest one and asked if we could give him a hug. He said "Of course, but only if you hug my mom too!" So we got to hug his mom as well. Turned out it was her 10th anniversary burn.

Seems not as amazing when typed out amid all the art cars and flame throwing, but for me it was little moments like this that made BRC so special, and one of the highlights of my week.

Everything was perfect. The weather was spectacular. The temple was astonishing. The Pier was a great laugh. I got to be in the yearbook! I seemed to show just in time for dinner everywhere I went, despite having loads of my own food! Nobody insulted me. I received the best compliments of my life. I earned a lot of self respect. I spent time learning from and teaching Burners young and old. The man didn't almost kill me. Nothing did. I was very in control yet in the moment. I made peace with my original Burning Man family. I reaquired a comfort in public settings. I was completely self-reliant. My camp did not blow away into the dust. The port-o-potties were as pleasant as always. There were an amazing number of new art cars. I got to sleep by the temple fire. I found amazing artifacts the next morning. I somehow had a HUGE amount of space around my camp. I had the most balanced burn of my life. I got a fantastic tan. I got to experience one good dust coating. I got AMAZING playa gifts. I got to be a part of some people's first burn. I found every friend I set out to find. The line in was not too long. The drive out was instantaneous. I got to stay until Tuesday evening. I made the most awesome friends ever and felt the best I've felt in 2 years. I heard a lot more variety in the music. I got fresh baked cookies by the temple burn, still hot! I surpassed my own goals.

I loved that there seemed to be a LOT more live music this year and also a lot of music that wasn't techno. I really loved that there was more variety. Thanks all, for moving past complaining and bringing to the playa what you want to hear.

Live as if everyone loves you and thinks you look great. Dance as if no one is watching.

mars wrote:I loved that there seemed to be a LOT more live music this year and also a lot of music that wasn't techno. I really loved that there was more variety. Thanks all, for moving past complaining and bringing to the playa what you want to hear.

where were those??

"being the change we want to see "like Gandhi with glow sticks" ~ Caveat Magister

- In the middle of Disorient's camp they had a dome where Francois K set up 8-pt surround sound. On late Friday night they played Dark Side Of The Moon from the master tapes; it sounded amazing! ... soo much more sonically pleasing than a lot of the crusty playa soundsystems. - Sitting in the temple listening to the bells (bowls?) and symbols play for quite some time. - Stream-punk-pyro-octopuss

Thanks so much to everyone sharing their 2011 "likes"! Reading this thread is warming my heart and making the sadness of being gone a little more bearable.

2011 was my first year and I had the time of my life. I loved waiting in line on Monday morning and watching the sun rise slowly on the playa, revealing the most amazing landscape I've ever seen. The cars driving in kicked up some dust, and the bright morning sunbeams filtering through it... wow.

Our greeter was such a sweetheart. When we told her we were virgins she said, "Welcome home! Where have you been? We've been waiting for you!" I got goosebumps all over and my eyes filled up with tears. In fact, I'm crying again just thinking about it. I met so many kind people all week and felt really loved and welcomed. I didn't make any lifelong friends, but I made a big effort to connect with people every chance I got and the human interaction was definitely the best part of my burn.

The Temple really touched me. I visited it every day. Since we arrived on Monday, I got to watch it grow and change over the course of the week as people added memories and mementos. The genuine expression of pain, the willingness to sit with sadness, and the ability to hold both joy and sorrow at the same time was incredibly refreshing.

So many more things come to mind, way too many to list. Volunteering with the Lamplighters, riding out along the trash fence alone, getting the spanking of a lifetime at Spanky's Wine Bar... OH, and I loved driving home, spotting other Burners, and sharing enthusiastic smiles and waves!

devilgrrl wrote:The hilarious signs, courtesy of BM staffers, that adorned the Porta-Pottys. They made giggle every time I peed and judging from the condition of the toilet seats, people finally seemed to take what they had to say in consideration.

Robbidobbs and Gonzo may (or may not) be "BM staffers", but many of those signs were put up by regular participants, some from eplaya, who were helping out for a few hours.

Well, those people are a laugh-a-minute. Do send my accolades, I appreciated the titters.

Thanks Crypto and devilgrrl. I'm one of those ePlayans that helps put up the 1050 exterior signs and some of the interior signs too. It is a fun job and I have a great boss. It was a great year for shit!!! Holly CRAP I've been part of the potty project for 6 events!!!! OMG!!! That is definitely one of my likes for this year. I liked just about everything this year. I had my best year ever. It was really really good. It is so nice to hang out with my dear friends that I see pretty much once a year. The repairs were really fun too. I'm already planning for next year.

Black Rock City Welding and Repair. The Night Time Warming Station.

Card Carrying Member BRCCP.

When you pass the 4th "bridge out!" sign; the flaming death is all yours.-Knowmad-

* my camp (spill camp and the dump)- my beautiful and hilarious campmates, our neighboring home brew and french press camps, living next to Center Camp, and all of the amazing music that happened around our piano. * the temple. the earth harp was ahhhhmazing.* the live painting at fractal nation.* being invited to a great potluck as I was biking home hungry.* the misting vagina by walk in camping. I was sooo hot, and she was so refreshing.* the otic oasis and playing a game with kids there.* all of the amazing people I met and hilarious and beautiful conversations we had.* helping with a sculpture.* the road trip to brc and back.* playing a xylophone mutant vehicle...* watching someone dance crazy good with a fire dart. * the big lebowski white russian procession, and being a human pin for some dusty ridiculous bowling...* and learning qigong at the temple later that morning.* singing at a karaoke art car that shot fire! so fun!!* taking over an art car with live music accompaniment to the womp and lots of fun dancing.* biking deep playa.* the little music box with an original score that I found by the trash fence.* finding a mock camp site a bit further down from the music box...* watching the sun rise three times.* the unicorn stampede and how the sun turned everyone pink. that, or having that many magickal creatures together at once did.* following my intuition to fantastic places.* meeting georgie boy and mister jellyfish.* finding a crazy temple with a swing on the top, and of course, rad people.* the lovely metal and wood temple...* the dusty fish on the temple burn night! * feeling comfortable and at home.* the vortex my friends and I were sucked into by the man.... we played music for hours and met many fantastic people.* megaphoning compliments to people (sometimes from my bike), megaphone conversations, heckling hippies with the megaphone on the way down to the burn , heckling, megaphoning, heckling, uhhm, and singing a weird droned out spacey version of "take me out to the ballgame" through my zube tube and megaphone with the burning band and a belly dancer at center camp... * kazoo choirs.* charon.* the shirt cocker with a fluorescent butt plug.* all of the other amazing experiences... * oh, and snack times with easy cheese and salami were awesome. especially when martinis were involved.

* my camp (spill camp and the dump)- my beautiful and hilarious campmates, our neighboring home brew and french press camps, living next to Center Camp, and all of the amazing music that happened around our piano. * the temple. the earth harp was ahhhhmazing.* the live painting at fractal nation.* being invited to a great potluck as I was biking home hungry.* the misting vagina by walk in camping. I was sooo hot, and she was so refreshing.* the otic oasis and playing a game with kids there.* all of the amazing people I met and hilarious and beautiful conversations we had.* helping with a sculpture.* the road trip to brc and back.* playing a xylophone mutant vehicle...* watching someone dance crazy good with a fire dart. * the big lebowski white russian procession, and being a human pin for some dusty ridiculous bowling...* and learning qigong at the temple later that morning.* singing at a karaoke art car that shot fire! so fun!!* taking over an art car with live music accompaniment to the womp and lots of fun dancing.* biking deep playa.* the little music box with an original score that I found by the trash fence.* finding a mock camp site a bit further down from the music box...* watching the sun rise three times.* the unicorn stampede and how the sun turned everyone pink. that, or having that many magickal creatures together at once did.* following my intuition to fantastic places.* meeting georgie boy and mister jellyfish.* finding a crazy temple with a swing on the top, and of course, rad people.* the lovely metal and wood temple...* the dusty fish on the temple burn night! * feeling comfortable and at home.* the vortex my friends and I were sucked into by the man.... we played music for hours and met many fantastic people.* megaphoning compliments to people (sometimes from my bike), megaphone conversations, heckling hippies with the megaphone on the way down to the burn , heckling, megaphoning, heckling, uhhm, and singing a weird droned out spacey version of "take me out to the ballgame" through my zube tube and megaphone with the burning band and a belly dancer at center camp... * kazoo choirs.* charon.* the shirt cocker with a fluorescent butt plug.* all of the other amazing experiences... * oh, and snack times with easy cheese and salami were awesome. especially when martinis were involved.

Oh my, that was fun to recap!

JKhttp://www.mudskippercafe.comWhen I was a kid I used to pray every night for a new bicycle.Then I realised that the Lord doesn't work that way so I stole one and asked Him to forgive me.

I have been dreaming of being a part of the family at Burning Man for 13 years. My wife's cousin gifted me a ticket this year, so the gates were thrown open and in spite of a dozen fuckin' obstacles that conspired to keep me away, the bell was rung and I hollered as loud as I could "I'm not a virgin anymore!" I felt like I was in a dream. We finally got to the camp (Cats!Cats!Cats!) right after the sun came up on Monday, found out where the porta-potties were, and I took off to pee. As I was walking along the road, the reality that I was actually standing on the playa at Burning Man hit me like a semi-truck and I started crying, just like I am now remembering it. May I never forget that precious moment and how I felt right then, no matter how many Burns I am able to lay hold of. I promise to not harsh any virgins buzz and excitement, hoping that they have felt the way I did that morning.

A few things that come to mind that I would love to share. - The wonderful creatively wacky souls that I got to know in our camp. Each one's loving, patient heart made my time with them a joy. - The incredibly generous and gorgeous airplane ride at dawn. The view of the city from above is absolutely breathtaking. - Taking a morning dump to the sounds from a camp adjacent to the PPs playing Frank Sinatra music. "I Did it My Way" (No Hovering!) - The topless women. I never stopped appreciating them, but my focus soon turned to their glorious beauty, strength and self-confident power that each one glowed from deep within. Stunning. - Shamelessly going commando in a tutu. - Getting caught in a Unicorn stampede at the Artery. I was trying to chase them out of the tent when a young filly grabbed me and started wildly humping my leg. I just let her "finish." I can now die. - Gathering charcoal from the still-burning remains of the Trojan Horse Saturday morning and talking to one of its designers who was there. It was his birthday. He got the delicious irony. - Spreading my wife's aunt's cremated remains over the playa. She changed my wife's life as a girl by giving her 'permission' to be an artist in a time when that was not normally done. God bless her soul. - Reading the messages that people had written on the Temple and being brought to tears over and over again from the succinct expressions of heart-felt love that each one conveyed. - Feeling like I was in the city of Troy, with the wild pagan pageantry, the back-lit glow around this magnificent Horse and the shock and awe of it's exploding glory and immolation. To use a phrase I used too damned often that week, "I was blown completely away!"

The good times far out-weighed the odd bummer, but the story of that Santorum-rimmed asswipe belongs on the other list.

The deep play bar "Sunrise Samuri"(sp) They had a door guy standing next to those old style saloon doors (no other walls just an arch with the the doors) and when we didn't enter thru them ,he kindly told us that we would have more fun if we went thru the doors and i belive we did!

Two of the virgins we camped with,they really got into the event and had a blast.